Just a Thought

This morning was gross and rainy/sleet/snow. My fake leather purse got wet. When I got in the elevator full of people, I leaned against the elevator wall, and my wet purse made the worst farting noise as it rubbed up against the wall. I had to explain it wasn't me....I don't think they believed me.

Brown Sugar Rum Poundcake...Um, Yum

Yesterday when I got off the train, a man, wearing sandals (I get it, it was a mild day, but still it's December, put on some sensible shoes) got off the train behind me. We apparently were going in the same direction because he proceeded to follow me at close range (not stalkerish, but still close enough) that didn't bother me, what did bother me was that he whistled the whole way down the street. I don't mind whistling, I don't see anything wrong with it, except that he was a really really bad whistler. He had no rhythm or cadence to his little tune...it ended up sounding more like shit...shit that followed me for blocks and blocks. I contemplated turning around and letting him know.."you suck at whistling", but I figured that would not be very nice of me, and then I would look like one of those crazy people that likes to spew hatred upon the world and yell at total strangers, and I'm really not so I didn't say anything. I didn't say about the completely inappropriate footwear or the really really bad whistling. But today for some reason, I'm still annoyed. Have issues much JB?

Well, if you have issues too and need to snuggle up with a nice glass of egg nog and a little rum cake this recipe is for you. My friend Brenna (not BreNda, Brenna) sent me this recipe after scouring her recipe files for days, and you know what, it was worth all her hard work. I made it on Sunday and have been having one small piece of it every night (and sometimes in the morning...first sign of a problem, drinking in the am?) and it gets better and better every day...each day the rum is a little stronger and the cake better because of it. If you want this recipe on your table at Christmas make it at least 4 days ahead of time. Its So Damn Good.

Brown Sugar-Rum Pound Cake - Courtesy of Brenna

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups butter, softened and divided
1 (16 ounce) package light brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar, divided
4 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup dark rum
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons light rum
2 tablespoons water
Sweetened whipped cream (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. GREASE and flour 2 (6-cup) Bundt pans or 2 (9- x 5-inch) loaf pans, and sprinkle evenly with pecans.

2. BEAT 11/4 cups butter at medium speed with an electric mixer about 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add brown sugar and 1/4 cup sugar, beating 5 to 7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until yellow disappears.

3. COMBINE milk, dark rum, and vanilla.

4. COMBINE flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with milk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.

5. BAKE at 325 degrees F for 50 to 55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes; remove from pans.

6. BRING remaining 1/2 cup sugar, remaining 1/4 cup butter, light rum, and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in a saucepan, and boil, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Drizzle over warm cakes, and cool completely on wire racks.

Rating = So Damn Good

Spaghetti Squash with Cranberries and Maple Syrup

There is a restaurant in the financial district called The Oceanaire Seafood Room that I pick every time I have a business lunch, precisely because they have Spaghetti Squash with Dried Cranberries and Maple Butter on the menu as an a la carte side dish. Now, because of the whole weight watchers thing I ask that they not put the maple butter on it, and it's still amazing. A few days before Thanksgiving, Boston.com ran an article about Boston Chef's Best Side Dishes, and the exact one from the Oceanaire was listed. This is the original recipe.

From Oceanaire Seafood Room in Boston, Courtesy of Dan Enos, chef

2 medium spaghetti squash (Cut in half and seeded)
3/4 cup dried cranberries

Maple Butter
1/4 pound unsalted butter (softened)
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cold water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place spaghetti squash flat side down on cookie sheet; cook for 45 minutes. While squash is roasting, place butter in mixer and whip on medium speed; combine the salt and the water and slowly add to the butter; mix until well blended; add the maple syrup until well blended; reserve. When squash is done, place in refrigerator for 1 hour to cool; then, with a fork, pull the inside of the squash into a bowl (should look similar to spaghetti). Place a saute pan over medium heat; add the squash and cranberries, cook until warm; add the maple butter, heat until melted.

I recreated this by omitting the maple butter part and just adding a few tablespoons of light maple syrup to the spaghetti squash mixture after I added the cranberries. It was delicious and still low fat...if not fat free. Amazing and an awesome side dish all year round. I will definitely be making this for Thanksgiving next year, and the best part is its so super cheap to make, and it's so easy.

Also, thanks to everyone who posted and emailed rum cake recipes to me...look for the recipes to be highlighted in the upcoming days and weeks before Christmas.

Rating = So Damn Good

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies | WW 1 pt

Making your goal weight sucks a little because you feel in limbo, you get a few more points per day, and then you find yourself getting a little heavy handed with the Old Fashion Kentucky Egg Nog at Thanksgiving...and...wham...those extra points are gone because now...we'll you've put a few back on. Thank goodness I had a buffer and even though I put a few back on I was still under goal. How will I ever get through the holidays...me loves me some egg nog, and Bailey's, and Holiday inspired lattes. Oh crap. December is going to be done in fits and starts I can tell, especially because I've got a hankering for bourbon cake and I'll probably end up making that this weekend. And yes, I have a whole weekend at home...to cook and bake and do whatever the-f I want. Sweet. I've got best laid plans to try and make a few casseroles....we'll see how that goes, but I'm going to make that Bourbon cake...hopefully, we'll see.

Does anyone have any liquor laden holiday recipes that I can try...bourbon cake, rum cake, whatever... I just enjoy drinking and eating my alcohol at this time of year, and if you had my in-laws you wouldn't judge you would just give me the damn recipes.

For a nice chocolatey low fat treat, try some of these little babies. So Good.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies | WW 1 pt
1 cup(s) all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp table salt
1/4 cup(s) butter, softened
1/2 cup(s) dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup(s) sugar, granulated
1/3 cup(s) unsweetened cocoa
2 large egg white(s) (I used EnerG Egg Replacer)
1 spray(s) cooking spray
6 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate chips, miniature

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
Beat butter and brown sugar with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy; gradually add granulated sugar, beating well. Add cocoa and egg whites, beating well. Gradually add flour mixture, beating until blended. Stir in chocolate minichips.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 11⁄2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes. Cool on pans 2 minutes or until firm. Remove cookies from pans; cool completely on wire racks. Yield: 40 cookies (serving size: 1 cookie).

Note: This does make exactly 40 cookies so try to make them all the same size to ensure you have the right amount and can account for all the points.

Rating = Damn Good

Goal...and Pumpkin Biscotti

Not, sure how, but I managed to get 1.5 full pounds below goal while traveling. Maybe it was stress, because I've most definitely been stressed, or maybe its been the fact that I haven't had access to my nightly hot cocoa, whipped cream and biscotti. Maybe.

So, now I'm officially maintaining. So, yeah, I get three more points per day. I know exactly how I'm going to spend them this week....SPIKED EGGNOG! Yes, Sir-E Bub. I can't wait.

Anyway...just got back in the office from being on the road...and I got a new computer while I was away, so lots of things to manage. Will post the recipe later.

Ok. Here's the recipe. I made another batch last night to bring to my mother in laws for Thanksgiving. Think of it as my personal olive branch.

Pumpkin Biscotti | 1 WW pt

1 1/2 c all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 c sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp clove

EnerG Egg Replacer for two eggs (or you can use two egg whites)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 canned pumpkin

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

Sift together the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices.

Whisk the eggs, pumpkin and vanilla together. Pour into the flour mixture.

Flour surface and hands and knead dough, this will take a while, it will be crumbly at first, but it will all come together with a little elbow grease.

Form the dough into two equal size balls, and then form each ball into a log about 12 inches long and 2-3 inches wide. This way you get 12 biscotti for each log and you can easily portion the WW points, it's one per biscotti when you make 24.

Bake the biscotti at 350 degrees for 22-30 minutes (I did 27 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees. When slightly cool cut each log on an angle into 12 pieces. Place the biscotti cut side down on the baking dish and bake for an additional 10 minutes, after 10 minutes, flip biscotti and bake on the other side for 10 minutes. 

The biscotti still may be a little chewy after this, but if allowed to sit overnight, should harden and be perfect for dipping into cocoa, coffee or hot cider.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Down to One

First...they fired my coordinator last week which is why I have been completely and utterly MIA.
I didn't have enough time to do my own job, and now I have to do my work, and the work that my assistant usually took care of. Not good times. I've been so bloody tired, so tired in fact that the other day when I ran out of conditioner, I went to the linen closet and grabbed what I thought was a bottle of conditioner and proceeded to wash my hair and then condition it, and complain the whole time about how "this conditioner sucks, it doesn't seem to be conditioning much." I didn't realize until the next day when I got in the shower that I was conditioning my hair with a bottle of body lotion. I haven't been cooking much, when I'm not on the road, I'm just strapped to my desk, and when I actually get home, I've just been throwing together salads and microwaved meals. CB has been eating a lot of pizza lately because I'm just not there to cook.

Balls I hate this. And, I have to get back on the road this week and won't be back until Sunday night....yeah, just in time to get up on Monday morning and go back to work. And blogger has been biting the big one because it hasn't been alerting me to comments on the blog, so I missed all of the ones that you left on the Moroccan stew that I last did, sorry I wasn't ignoring you, blogger just didn't let me know you left a comment.

So, here we are, one pound away from goal, on the road again and a week before Thanksgiving. I wonder when I'll actually lose that last pound.

Hope to be back on here soon. I have a few recipes I haven't blogged yet, so hopefully I can throw those up before I head out again.

Be back soon...in what capacity, who the hell knows

Off the Wagon...On the Wagon

I was in the Big Easy for three day and totally let my diet slide. This mornings weigh-in had me at gaining a pound this past week. I'm grateful it was only a pound and hopefully it will be easy to get back on the wagon now that I'm home. I'll try and do some cooking this week too. Damn business travel is screwing me all up.

Morocan Slow Cooker Butternut Squash and Carrot Stew | WW 4 pts

Look, I'm only going to tell you this once. MAKE THIS DISH! It does not taste low fat, it does not taste like weight watchers, its amazing. I loved it so much that I have plans to make it again (sans chickpeas) for Thanksgiving as a side dish.

It. Is. That. Good.

Don't omit the red pepper or the cumin or the cinnamon. It makes the dish. Mmmm.

Oh, yeah, and get out there and Rock the Vote! Happy Election Day Everyone.

Moroccan Slow Cooker Butternut Squash and Carrot Stew
Weight Watchers | 4 points

1 spray(s) cooking spray 1 small onion(s), chopped 1 medium garlic clove(s), minced 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes* 1 cup(s) carrot(s), baby 1 cup(s) canned crushed tomatoes 1/2 cup(s) vegetable broth 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground cumin 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 15 oz canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1/2 tsp table salt

Coat a small skillet with cooking spray. Add onion and garlic; sauté for 5 minutes. Place squash in a 3-quart or larger slow cooker (crockpot). Add sauteed onion and garlic, carrots, tomatoes, broth, cinnamon, cumin and red pepper flakes. Cover and turn on to low heat; simmer for 6 hours. Add chickpeas and salt. Stir, cover and heat for an additional 5 minutes. Yields about 1 1/3 cups per serving.

Rating = Sp God Damn Good

Lemon Pepper Asparagus | ww 0 pts

Besides losing weight, the one thing about being on ww that I love is that I have discovered asparagus. I never ate it before joining ww and now I literally cannot get enough of it. Although, I had heard the whole "asparagus makes your pee stink" theory I had never really paid much attention to it. That was, until I was traveling recently had asparagus at dinner, it was a long day with lots of conversing with people and by the time I had gotten to my hotel room I had forgotten that I had eaten at dinner time. I prepped for bed, removed my eye make-up, washed my face, brushed my teeth, flossed, and then I had to pee. As I sat there on the toilet I began to smell something terrible, I looked around the bathroom for what could be causing the stink, and then said to myself.."I'm going to have to call housekeeping to come up here and clean this bathroom...it stinks." It wasn't until I got up to flush the toilet that I realized that it wasn't a lack of housekeeping, it was ASPARAGUS PEE!

I could not stop laughing at myself, imagine if I had called housekeeping to complain about the odor in my bathroom and it was me all along...yeah, that would have been smooth.

Anyway, today is Monday and it is my weekly weigh-in (I just want to say that I won't be only posting on Mondays, its just that the travel schedule for work has been horrendous and it won't get better for a few weeks...so I'll try to post more than once a week, but right now...ugh, bear with me.) So, this morning at weigh in I had dropped another 1.5 pounds from last week giving me a grant total of 11 pounds (i think that's right) and I have 2.5 pounds to go until goal, which I'm sure will be harder to achieve with all the Halloween candy, Thanksgiving food, and spiked eggnog that I'm sure to consume over the next two months. But, hopefully I'll stay on track...hopefully.

Grilled Lemon Pepper Asparagus
1 bunch asparagus
1 lemon
salt and pepper

Trim the woody ends off of the asparagus, then place in boiling water for 30 seconds. As soon as 30 second is up submerge in an ice bath to stop the cooking process. Prepare a grill pan with cooking spray, get pan nice and hot.

Remove asparagus from ice bath and season with salt and pepper and a little lemon zest. Place on hot grill pan, squeeze lemon juice onto asparagus as it grills. Cook to your liking turning asparagus a few times while cooking.

Rating = Damn Good

Vegan Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Biscotti | WW 1 pt

Ugh, I was traveling again last week and ate from a salad bar 4 out of six meals, so as much as I would have liked to have been cooking and baking, I was conferencing and trying my hardest to be healthy while "on the road".

When I got home I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had lost a few more pounds, yep; and then yesterday I ate eggplant parm (full fat), chocolate ganache cake (totally full fat) and a slew of other not so weight watcher friendly things. So, when I weighed myself on Saturday and Sunday morning, I was a full two pounds lighter than when I weighed myself today, for my actual weekly weigh-in that I have to record on the WW website. So, grand total from last week is that I'm still down a half a pound from last week and 9.5 pounds total, but had I not been such a little piggy yesterday I think the scale would have been a bit lighter. Was the cake and the eggplant parm worth the heavier number on the scale? Not at all, lesson learned.

I did however have time to make one little vegan low fat biscotti recipe yesterday morning. Each little tasty treat is only 1 point and I find that I really enjoy dunking them in a mug of sugar free hot cocoa at night after dinner. I again got this recipe from the Fat Free Vegan Blog I mentioned in my previous post. Check it out.

1 1/2 tbsp Energy Egg Replacer
6 tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 cup(s) all-purpose flour
3 tbsp mini chocolate chips
3/4 cup(s) sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Put the egg replacer and water into a blender and whirl for a few seconds, just to mix.

Mix this mixture with the other ingredients. Dough should be sticky but not runny. Turn out onto a floured surface and shape into 2 logs about 3 inches wide. Flatten the logs to about 1 inch high. Place on a lightly oiled or non-stick cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then cut into 1/2 - 3/4 inch slices. Place cut side down on cookie sheet and bake for 10 more minutes. Repeat on other side for another 10 minutes. When done, the biscottI may seem soft, but they will harden as they dry.

Rating - So Damn Good

WW Check In

Hey its Monday and I'm checking in with my weight loss post. I'm only down a half pound this week, which may be due the enormous amount of wine I drank between Friday and Sunday. It just seemed that I always had a glass in my hand, and it was never empty because I kept filling it back up. Good Times. I can't complain, I ate well and drank well and still lost another half a pound, am I a little more motivated for next weeks weigh in? SURE, but I'm not beating myself up or anything. So, my grand total weight loss is 9 pounds and I only have 4.5 more to my goal.

Also, can I please just share a little story about my Sunday morning. It was cold, very cold and windy and I didn't want to go for a run outside, but I bundled up with long pants, two long sleeve shirts, gloves and before I left CB put a hat on me (he was clearly thinking better than I was early in the morning). I left thinking this run is going to suck, it's cold it's windy, I'll probably end up cutting it short, blah blah. But as I got going and my legs warmed up I fell into a really nice stride and decided to take the long way back around the cemetery. This is one of the most beautiful cemeteries that I have seen, CB and I have actually gone through bike rides in it because it's so big and contains so many war memorial burial grounds, it's a pretty humbling place to go to see how many men and women lost their lives in the name of freedom.

As I was rounding part of the cemetery, there is an area where the tell tale white headstones mark another war burial ground; it's close to the street so you can see the tablets laying a path one after another as you go. As I was running, there was an older man in front of me with what looked like a naval cap on, as I got closer to him I realized that as he was walking down the street with almost a march to his step, his right hand was raised in salute to all the headstones making a path to his right. I was so moved by this, people passed him left and right, cars whizzed by coming and going, but he never took his eye off those grave markers and his right hand never dropped its salute.

I'm so glad that I took the long way home that morning or I would have missed this most amazing scene one loan veteran paying homage to those who fought before him on a random cold October morning.

Vegan Gingerbread Biscotti | WW 1pt

First, sorry the picture is so blurry, I took this literally as I was running out the door and almost missed my train this morning...

Second, finally I had some free time to do some WW baking, this actually didn't come from WW it came from a vegan blog that I've had good luck with for low fat baking ideas, Fat Free Vegan Kitchen. Here is a link to her recipe for Fat Free, Gluten Free Gingerbread Biscotti and HOT DAMN these were good. The recipe makes 24 and each is 1 point, so having a few at night with a sugar free hot cocoa is totally doable on the WW plan. AWESOME.CB had a few last night and if I hadn't raved about how they were "only one fucking point each can you believe it?" he never would have know they were vegan and low fat.

Third, yes, I'm psyched as all hell that the Red Sox came back and won the game last night. What I am not happy about is that it will force me to sit through another broadcast on TBS where ever damn commercial break is a Viagra commercial with that horrible terrible song...VIIIIIVVVVVVAAAAA VIIIIAAAGGGGRRRRAA, Viva Viagra, every time that commercial comes on I want to throw a shoe at the tv. And now, I'll need to be assaulted with that stupid commercial again on Saturday night. Humph.

Anyway - go to the website link above for the recipe and check out a few of her other ones too.

Rating = Damn Good (So Damn Good when dunked in hot chocolate)

Tuscan Pumpkin White Bean Soup | WW 2pts

So, CB and I were up in VT for a few days so I wasn't able to do my Monday morning weigh-in. This will have to serve as that. So, as of today I am down another 2 pounds for a total of 8.5 since beginning the program three weeks ago. I have 5 pounds left until I reach my ultimate goal and then I will have to start learning the maintaining part of WW and not just the losing part.

Moving on from WW for a minute I have an observation. On more than one occasion, whether I be walking or out for a run or what have you, I have come across a person with one of those red and white sticks that blind people use. Now on more than one occasion I have seen people with these sticks, walking on the sidewalk and not using it, simply walking with it in their hand or folded up or what-not. I was running the other day and had to run under construction scaffolding and there was a person coming at me with one of these sticks and I became nervous because there is never enough room for two people to comfortably pass under one of these get ups, let alone when one is wielding a stick. But, it was all for not, the person never even put the stick on the ground, he just kind of walked with it in his hand. I spent the rest of my run trying to figure out if the person was blind, and if they were, why weren't they using the stick, and if the person could see fine (which it seemed like to me) was the stick just a prop? Does anyone have answers to this? I see this more often than not, seemingly sighted people walking with these sticks, not using them, simply walking with them.

Onto the recipe. Yes, the recipe was good, the second day. I do not recommend eating it as soon as you make it, I thought it was by far much better the second day. Also, because I love pumpkin and curry together I added curry powder to the soup...do whatever you feel like, it's your soup.

Tuscan Pumpkin White Bean Soup
Weight Watchers

1 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray, or enough to coat pot
1 medium onion(s), coarsely chopped
15 oz canned pumpkin
3 1/2 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth
15 1/2 oz canned white beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 tsp ground oregano
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
6 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Coat a large soup pot with cooking spray and set over medium-low heat. Add onion, cover and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes.

Stir in pumpkin, broth, beans and oregano; simmer 8 minutes.

In a blender, process soup in batches until smooth. (Note: Make sure not to overfill blender in order to avoid splattering.) Return soup to pot and reheat; season with salt and pepper.

To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top each with 1 tablespoon of grated cheese. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Rating = Damn Good (the second day)

WW Check In

So, my Monday morning WW check-in was yesterday and I tipped the scale 1.5 pounds down from last week, so my total weight lost in the past two weeks has been 6.5 pounds. Not too shabby.

CB and I were away this weekend so I didn't get a chance to cook or bake anything. I will try to make something between now Thursday before I have to leave again...geez I'm a busy beaver.

Barley with Butternut Squash, Apples and Onions | WW 3pts

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy. That's what this recipe was to make. I think I whipped it together in about 20 minutes. I'll be honest. It was good, but I don't think it was as good as the barley asparagus risotto, or the squash bake, but it was 3 points and it did the trick for me. CB enjoyed it, but he had about 4 servings and a full side salad before he was full.

I didn't have a proper weigh-in on Monday because I was traveling for work and didn't have a scale in my room or in the hotel gym, so I'll use my Thursday morning weight as my Monday morning weigh-in, and I'm down another pound, so that's 5 pounds all together since I started just over two weeks ago. Not too shabby.

Do I feel a difference? Yes. When you are only 5' 3" the smallest amount of weigh gain can make a big difference in your body, you just don't have the height to hide any weight. My clothes are looser (thank Jebus) and my ring is not as tight, and weirdly enough, my watch fits me better.

Just being on the plan helped me make good food choices while I was away. Faced with hotel and conference food for 6 days, I was petrified to get on the scale when I got back. I was afraid that trying to eat healthy, but not knowing the food points of anything I was being served was going to be a recipe for disaster; but it wasn't, I guess I was capable of making the right food choices even when the points weren't given to me. That felt good.

So, I'm still happy with the plan. Is it tough sometimes, sure. Is it easier to say no to certain foods now that I'm knowledgeable about their point values, hell yeah.

I am still looking forward to baking with some of the weight watchers recipes. My little sister has a birthday coming up, so that may be my first foray into a ww inspired birthday cake.

Barley with Butternut Squash, Apples and Onions

Weight Watchers
3/4 tsp table salt, divided
1/2 cup uncooked barley
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 cup butternut squash, diced
1 cup onion(s), chopped
1/2 cup sweet red pepper(s), diced
1 medium apple(s), peeled, cored, diced
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
3/4 tsp dried thyme - I USED DRIED RUBBED SAGE
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth - I USED VEGETABLE BROTH

Bring 3 cups of water and 1/2 teaspoon of salt to a boil in a medium saucepan; add barley. Cover saucepan and simmer barley until tender, about 30 to 35 minutes; drain. - IUSED QUICK COOKING BARLEY SO THIS STEP TOOK 10 MINUTES.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add squash, onion and red pepper. Cook, stirring often, until vegetables are browned and almost tender, about 8 minutes.

Stir in apple, garlic, thyme, black pepper and remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring, until apple is almost tender, about 2 minutes; stir in broth, scraping bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Stir in cooked barley; toss over low heat to mix and coat. Remove from heat and serve. Yields about 3/4 cup per serving.

Rating = Good

Four Years

It's amazing. I love you more today than I ever thought possible. Love indeed does grow. It does get stronger. You are the single most amazing person I have ever met. I thank you for trusting me to be your wife for the rest of our lives, it's the best gift that I've ever been given and you continue to give it to me everyday. You are my love...happy fourth.

Baked Pasta with Butternut Squash and Ricotta | WW 5 pts

This was good, but I love butternut squash. I didn't have fresh thyme, so I substituted fresh rosemary and it was great. The recipe calls for 8 oz of pasta, use this amount, don't use more or there won't be enough sauce and the pasta will be dry...yuck. Also, this dish is best on the first day, it doesn't work well for leftovers. CB had about three servings of it because he liked it that much. I had one and a half servings equalling about 7 points.

Also, if you're not on WW, this recipe can be easily made into a heartier version using full fat ingredients and more sauce. I liked it this way though, it hit the spot.

I won't be posting for a few days...just a lot going on with a wedding this weekend and then work occupying every freaking waking minute from Sunday until Wednesday. I know I should be happy to have a job, especially with the whole economy and financial market eating a shit sandwich right now, but man, can a girl get a whole weekend to herself...and maybe a few of her nights off too.

Just asking.

So, the recipe....I've yet to make any of the muffins or cookies, hopefully I'll have time to do that next week. I'll try to throw some rogue recipe posts in between now and next Thursday, but no promises.

Pasta with Butternut Squash and Ricotta

Weight Watchers

2 sprays cooking spray
20 oz butternut squash, fresh, peeled and cubed*
1/8 tsp table salt, for cooking pasta
12 oz uncooked whole-wheat pasta, penne
1 1/4 cup fat-free skim milk
2 Tbsp white all-purpose flour
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or to taste
1 Tbsp thyme, fresh, chopped, divided - I USED ROSEMARY AND IT WAS GREAT!
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano recommended
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Coat a 2 1/2- to 3-quart baking dish with cooking spray.

Place squash on prepared baking sheet; roast until tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Place in a large bowl and mash.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. After squash has been roasting for about 10 minutes, cook pasta according to package directions; drain and return to pot.

In a medium saucepan, whisk together milk, flour, garlic, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking frequently; reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in mashed squash and 2 1/2 teaspoons of thyme. Add sauce to pasta; toss to mix and coat.

Transfer pasta mixture to prepared baking dish; dot with spoonfuls of ricotta and then sprinkle with Parmesan and walnuts. Bake until top is lightly browned in a few spots, about 15 to 20 minutes; remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of thyme. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Place squash on prepared baking sheet; roast until tender, about 20 to 30 minutes. Place in a large bowl and mash.

Rating = Damn Good (the first day, really sucky as leftovers)

Barley Asparagus Risotto_WW 3 Points

Friday night was great. I had the whole house to myself as CB had his arse parked on a bar stool for boys night out. I had time to go to the market, buy groceries and then actually cook them. Wonderful. I perused the WW website for something that I thought would hit the spot and still not be over 6 points per serving, because I was feeling hungry and I wanted to be able to have a nice big bowl of whatever I made as long as it didn't end up tasting like shit.

This was great. I have to admit, I was skeptical, but it ended up being really wonderful and I had enough left overs that CB and I ate it for dinner on Saturday and although this didn't fill him up and he used it as a side dish to his main meal, it really was very tasty and I would not have second thoughts about making this again for non WW peeps.

So, how do I feel about my first week on WW. Well, the first two days were really hard, I felt like I was constantly hungry and was aggravated by how quickly my points seemed to disappear. By the third day when there was movement on the scale, and the points seemed to last longer because I was making better food choices the plan began to feel easy to live with. I'm extremely glad that I decided to give it a try. I think I'll be able to stick with this, I hope I'm not being to premature here...I hope that the plan continues to work for me in the upcoming weeks...we'll see.

So, at then end of one week I have lost a grand total of 4.0 pounds. I have 9 pounds to my goal. Fingers Crossed.

Barley-Asparagus "Risotto" with Balsamic Vinegar
Weight Watchers

2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion(s), minced
1 cup uncooked barley, use quick-cooking pearl variety
3 cup fat-free chicken broth, or vegetable broth
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup chives, fresh, sliced
1 1/2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

Warm oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until onion is tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in barley and cook, stirring, about 1 minute more.

Add broth, cover and simmer over low heat for 8 minutes; stir in asparagus and simmer 2 minutes more. Remove from heat, stir in chives and vinegar; season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

3 WW points per serving

Rating = Damn Good

Checking In

Ok. So I spent some time searching the web for weight watchers recipes that I think are blog worthy. I'm going to be making them this weekend. I'll post on Monday and let you know how much weight I lost in the first week. Yeah, I'm sure you're on the edge of your seat for that one.

JB

Vegan Banana Mango Ginger Sunflower Seed Bread

I made this ages ago, took a picture, loaded it to Flickr and then just forgot to blog it. So, it's not weight watchers, it is low fat, not counting points kind of low fat, but still, you can eat it and not feel terribly guilty about it, just stop at one piece.

My first day on weight watchers wasn't terrible. I can see how it would be difficult to know the point value of a lot of food that I would typically bake or cook, so it will just be best for me to stick to ww inspired recipes until I get the hang of things. I still don't quite understand the activity points that you can earn through exercise, considering I'm sure most people just starting the program aren't banging out 8 mile runs like I did today. That run would pretty much translate into 8 extra points, I think, which seems a little counterproductive to me, right now. So, we'll see how it goes, I'm just doing it on line, I'm not going to meetings, I'm sure those are more effective, but with my schedule it's just not an option.

Here we go...

Low Fat Banana, Ginger, Mango Sunflower Seed Bread 

Inspired by Veganomicon

2 large or 3 small very ripe bananas

1/4 C applesauce

1/4 C canola oil

1/2 C sugar

2 tbsp molasses

2 C all purpose flour

3/4 tsp b. soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 C chopped dried mango

1/8 C chopped crystallized ginger

1/4 C toasted sunflower seeds

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

In a large mixing bowl, mash bananas, add sugar, applesauce, oil and molasses, whisk briskly to incorporate. 

Sift the flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Mix until the wet and dry ingredients are just combined. Fold in the mango, ginger and sunflower seeds. 

Transfer to the pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Rating - Damn Good

Weight Watchers

So, I signed up for weight watchers this morning. I don't want to lose much weight, actually, the healthy weight calculator told me I couldn't lose more than 18 pounds to remain in a healthy weight range. I don't want to lose 18, I want to lose 10. I've actually lost the same two or three pounds over and over again and I'd really just like to take them off and keep them off this time.
I signed up for three months...hopefully that's all it takes, but be prepared for weight watchers inspired recipes until Christmas.

Wait, Christmas is only three months away...good grief.

Curried Bean Salad | 101 Cookbooks

I had a nice weekend at home; although it was spent stripping wallpaper, removing wall paper glue, sanding the walls, prepping the walls, cutting in the paint on the walls, and then finally painting the walls; when it was done, it was done, and I knew there was not another square inch of wall paper left in the house that needed removal. This was a good feeling.

Watching Notre Dame pull off a win in their first game of the season, albeit not an impressive win, but a win, was a good feeling.

Getting a 7.5 mile run in on Sunday morning was a good feeling.

Watching Tom Brady go down clutching his knee in agony on Sunday afternoon was definitely not a good feeling. I've graduated from denial into acceptance. I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason....I don't know what the reason is for this, possibly for Bill to show the country what a great coach he is no matter who his quarterback is. Maybe it's so Matt Cassell who's been playing second fiddle to someone ever since he was in high school can shine and make a name and a career for himself, or maybe it's just to make the season more interesting. Whatever it is, I feel bad for Tom, the season looks completely different today than it did on Sunday morning, and we'll see what happens.

I've been paying a lot of attention to 101 cookbooks lately because she has such a great collection of vegetarian recipes and ideas. I like her style of cooking and every time I visit her website I find something that I tag to make later. I didn't follow this recipe to the ingredient, because I didn't have all the ingredients on hand, but I used it as a guide for what I had in the pantry and refrigerator and I think it came out really well. Here is the original recipe, and below is how I made it with what I had on hand.

1 can black beans

1 can black eyed peas

1 can white beans

1/2 medium red onion sliced into half moons

3/4 cup celery chopped

1 clove garlic

1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt

1 1/2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp finely chopped crystalized ginger

juice and zest of one lemon

1/3 cup olive oil

2 tbsp fresh cilantro chopped

In a large bowl combine beans, red onion, and celery. Make the curry vinaigrette by mashing the garlic clove with the salt into a thick paste. In a bowl or jar whisk together this garlic paste, the curry powder, ginger, lemon juice/zest and olive oil. Whisk well, taste, and add adjust flavors/salt if needed. Pour about half the dressing over the beans and toss to combine,. Add more dressing a bit at a time (i just used the whole thing).

I served this just after I made it, but I think that the left overs tasted much better the next day after the flavors had a chance to meld together.

Rating = Damn Good (better the next day)

Cookin'

I made it to the grocery store last night. I bought food. I will cook this weekend.

Checking In

No. I didn't fall off the face of the earth. I just can't seem to leave the office early enough to cook or bake or do anything besides grab a cocktail and then go to bed. This has been my life for the past month or so; get up at 5:25, run for an hour, shower, get ready for work, go to work...work...work...work, come home, grab a cocktail, get in pajamas, go to bed.

Not very exciting...its been rather stressful. Yesterday I almost could have just put my head down on my desk and cried...I'm just so burned out with work and there really isn't an end to the onslaught of deadlines that face me. You know that reoccurring dream that everyone has where you're trying to run away from something, but you can't run fast enough, and then your feet become so heavy that you just seem to tread water in the same place never making any progress in getting away from whatever is chasing you...that's how I felt yesterday at work...it seemed a new deadline just attached itself to the one in front of it...again and again.

I shouldn't complain, I know. I should consider myself lucky that in this economy I'm faced with too much work, but it doesn't make the deadlines softer and it actually puts more pressure on me to "perform.' So just give me this little bitch session and I'll be on my way...back to work.

So, the long weekend...maybe I'll have time to bake. I don't know. I've got my fingers crossed.

Poached Egg on Sauteed Spinach

Ok. So part of the reason that my job blew chunks last week was due the fact that I needed to interview candidates to fill a position under me. I was looking for a coordinator; someone to coordinate all of the marketing and business development efforts that my company undertakes throughout the year, proposals, interviews, advertisements, award submissions, direct mailings, etc etc.

I hate interviewing people, hate it. I find it extremely nerve racking, time consuming and in general just a big pain in the ass. I know it’s a necessary evil, but I still don’t enjoy it.

I had a lot of candidates, and on the last day, I was really just tired of the whole process. I had one interview left, my last one of the day; I had high hopes for the person because she worked at a competitor of mine. I was eager to see what she could bring to the position because of her direct industry experience.

I must make a note here before I go on. If you don’t know about my obsession with clean and neat mouths, please see this post.

So, a few minutes into the interview I noticed that this girl had a really odd way of holding her mouth. Her lips formed what I can only call a snarl, and it was definitely more pronounced when she was talked. She seemed to favor the right hand side of her mouth as the side that curled up into the “snarl”. I thought to myself, she must know how distracting this is, why would anyone make that face when they are talking, or at all for that matter? I didn’t hear one word this girl said, I just stared at her mouth the whole time.

After she left I asked the president of my company (who was in the interview with me) if she noticed the snarl. “What was up with that girl’s mouth?” was her quick response. And my only reply was that she constantly held her mouth like she had just walked into someone else’s fart. That is the only way I can describe it. You’re walking down a hallway or wherever and you smell the distinct aroma of flatulent, and then you make “that face” her face was constantly “that face.”

Needless to say, she didn’t get the job. But we have nicknamed fart face.

Moving right along.

I made this for breakfast on Sunday and it was just great.

First, I sauted some baby spinach in a little olive oil and sea salt over low heat until it had wilted.

Second, I brought a pot of water to a rolling boil and then turned the water to simmer and gently placed two eggs into the hot water. I left the eggs in until all the white parts had turned from translucent to solid white. I'm not sure how long it took, sorry.

I placed the spinach on a nice piece of toasty Italian bread and then laid the egg on the spinach and topped with some freshly ground pepper. Mmm Mmm....

Rating = So Damn Good

Grilled Shrimp, Spinach and Fontina Pizza

So, we've met just about all of our neighbors, and all of them are super nice. The house directly behind us is a huge three story home that has been hacked into a three family, it's either condos or rental apartments, I'm not sure which. We've met one of the men who lives there on the first floor with his gorgeous golden retriever Max - he's a great guy and we like running into him because he's always friendly. We haven't met the man who lives on the second floor, he seems like a loner type; he doesn't say hello when he sees people, he always has his head down when he walks down the street...he just keeps to himself.

Now, the lady that lives on the third floor...boy oh boy does she think she's the cats meow. She's probably in her forties, blond, she's not fat, but I wouldn't categorize her as thin, she's really just thick in the middle, but man, does she have a huge rack.

Why do I know this?

Well, she wears the most inappropriately low cut tops everyday (to work)- and then at night she changes into impossibly short shorts and a tank top to weed the 4 square foot patch of earth in front of the house that has some flowers in it. She doesn't weed like a normal person though, she completely bends at the hips (as if her knees didn't bend) so that she's folded over, ass in air to weed the garden, and while she does this her breasts are nearly falling out of her tank top. Everyday.

Well, Saturday night we decided to try our hand at the grilled pizza, so CB was spending some time in the back yard getting the grill ready (and drinking beers) and I was inside preparing the dough and spinach and shrimp, etc. It took a while for the grill to get ready and then the dough to cook, so CB had been in the back yard alone for some time. When I came outside with the tray full of pizza toppings something caught my eye and for some reason I looked up into the third floor window, where, the neighbor was standing, with just her underwear on, no top, her humongous breasts clearly visible and nearly touching the window screen. It was at this moment that I realized, this show was not intended for me, it was probably for my husband. I was literally frozen in place, and like a ventriloquist talking out of one side of my mouth, I whispered to CB, "oh my God, did you just see that?"

He missed the whole thing, and was then pissed that I didn't alert him to the "tit show in the window." Typical.

From there we just went on and had a lovely night outside...snickering a little through dinner.

Getting Settled

So, I'm still getting settled. The only thing I've made, cooked, baked, since moving into the house two weeks ago is the potato salad I posted previously. Every night I come home from work and either strip wall paper, or prep walls, or paint. So, there has been no hot kitchen action in my house yet. I'm hoping that Saturday night I will have time to attempt grilled pizza. Has anyone done this before? I'm a little afraid of it, but I'm hoping to give it a try.

Sorry for the complete void in posts, but I can't seem to get into a rhythm beyond going home every night and working in the house. The kitchen...I'm not sure I've located it yet.

Stay tuned...I'll hopefully have before and afters of some of the rooms soon.

JB

Creamy Cucumber Rosemary Potato Salad

First, a few random things.
1. I had my teeth cleaned today by a woman who wore mint flavored latex gloves Refreshing at first, but after forty five minutes with her mint scented digits in my mouth the flavor became a bit overpowering...and my jaw hurt.

2. I love having my teeth cleaned. I am overly diligent with my oral health. And, when I meet someone new, the first thing I do is look at is their teeth. This was a big deal before I was married, when I was still part of the dating scene. If I met a man in a bar or wherever I was meeting men at the time, the first thing I did was look at his teeth, because, my theory at the time and still in effect today is, that if a person cannot make the time to take care of their mouth, they probably don't make the time to take care of their private parts...get my drift. I never tested this theory out because I never looked at the private parts of a man with bad teeth, or overall bad oral hygiene, but I'm going to stick with the theory that bad oral health means bad genital health. It may seem like a leap to some people, but my case stands as such.

3. Our door bell rang by itself yesterday, twice. No one was at the door, the door was open and the doorbell just rang...all by itself. Does this happen or should I maybe call a priest and have the house "cleansed"?

4. Running is coming along. I'm up to 5 miles every other day. And Saturday I was feeling all super badass and ran 5.75 miles. Watch me now!

5. Yesterday - hot as balls. Today - raining and cool. Whatever.

Ok, so this little side dish was excellent. I loved it. Here's what I did. I boiled a small bag of red skinned potatoes until the were fork tender, but still had a little snap at the very center of the potato. I put them in an ice bath to stop the cooking as soon as I thought they were perfect. While the potatoes were cooling I seeded and finely chopped a cucumber, and chopped a few springs of fresh rosemary. In a bowl I combined a spoonful of light mayonnaise and a few spoonfuls of greek style yogurt. to this I added a little sea salt, freshly grated pepper and the rosemary. Mix to combine, add the cucumber. When the potatoes are cool quarter them and add to the mixture.

This recipe was great after being chilled for about 30 minutes, but surprisingly the left overs the next day were just as good. Enjoy. Then brush your teeth.

Rating = Damn Good

Watermelon Mint Salad with Orange Blossom Honey

We are all moved and settling in very nicely. A lot of the neighbors have come over to welcome us to the neighborhood, and the 96 year old woman who lives in the house next door baked us a batch of blueberry muffins on Saturday morning.

I seem to have found my own way of introducing myself to the neighborhood...like not realizing how many damn windows we now have, and unlike a condo, they are on every side of the house, so when, the day we moved in and I couldn't find the box that housed my pajamas and I proceeded to walk from room to room, rummaging through umpteen million boxes without clothes on...only to then realize all the blinds were up and everyone could see inside. That was the first night.

The second night as I was watching an episode of Tell Me You Love Me on HBO, which contains thought provoking dialogue, but also a shit ton of naked sex scenes...I realized that the wall opposite the tv has two windows facing the house next door, and both windows have blinds, which were conveniently all the way UP...so not only do the neighbors think I'm an exhibitionist, they also probably think I'm a crazy porn watching sex fiend who stays home on Friday nights with no life, in order to get my porn fix.

I won't even mention the widow in the bathroom...must remember to put that shade down before I sit on the toilet, I think the neighborhood has seen enough ass this week.

In a moment of complete brain funk I bought a whole watermelon a couple days before we moved. Yeah, so I had to move a friggin watermelon along with all my other shit. But you know what...this watermelon salad went real well with the muffins that the neighbor brought over on Saturday.

Watermelon and Mint Salad with Orange Blossom Honey
3 cups cubed seedless watermelon
3-4 springs fresh mint, leaves torn
Combine together and top with a drizzle of orange blossom honey.

Yum

Rating = Damn Good

Honey Mustard Grilled Salmon

Do you have honey? Do you have whole grain mustard? Do you have salmon steaks? If you answered yes to these three questions you can make this delicious salmon meal in no time.

I simply took a few tablespoons of whole grain dijon mustard and mixed it up with about 1/4C honey and then smothered a few salmon steaks with the..well, (I don't know it wasn't a marinade and it technically wasn't a rub...I'm not sure what you would call it) but I covered the salmon on both sides with the stuff and then let it sit in the refrigerator for a while until I was ready to grill them.

I placed them on a hot grill and let them cook on one side until they were almost cooked through, and then I flipped them and cooked them on the other side just long enough to get grill marks on them. I think it was about 7 minutes or so. Seriously. People. Make. This. Recipe.

I served it with a nice Israeli cous cous and a cucumber salad. Mmm.

On a side note, the kitchen is officially in boxes, no cooking or baking for a few days...at least.
We move tomorrow...THANK JEBUS.

Rating = So Damn Good

Mixed Berry Soup

I had the most God awful, annoying T driver this morning. I boarded the train at 7:15..way too early to have a T driver who thinks he's an announcer for the WWF. As we approached every train station he announced the name of the station like he was announcing a prize fighter on his way to the squared circle. "Next stop.....HaaaayyyyMaaarrkkeet..grrr" I shit you not. And what made it even more annoying was that he talked all the way in between stops..."please remember to take your belongings...your papers...your bags...your trash." and then he would go into the reminder to "stay clear of the doors, stay clear of the doors, stay clear of the doors." We're not daft, I think we know how to get in and out of the train. What made it even worse, is, it's Monday and I just wanted to relax and read the paper on my way to work this morning, but I couldn't read more than three words before the WWF announcer would pipe back up and start his ridiculous announcer voice again. Ugh.

I had the opportunity to make a few quick things this weekend before I completely packed up the kitchen, so I should be able to post a few times between now and when I'm unpacking at the end of the week. The first thing I made I got the recipe from the Today show. They have this Italian family that comes on about once a month and shared their restaurant recipes with everyone. This one was fabulous, I'm not really sure how it can't be it includes a bottle of wine, berries and sherbet, all of which is good on its own, even better when mixed together. Yum.

If you make this recipe please let me know if you like it. I literally could have just drank the soup it was that good, but I want to know what you think.

Mixed berry soup with raspberry sorbet
Fresco by Scotto (on the Today Show)
6 servings

INGREDIENTS
• 4 cups mixed berries plus more for garnish
• 3 cups red wine
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 quart raspberry sorbet

DIRECTIONS
Combine 4 cups berries, wine, sugar, and cinnamon stick in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

Remove from heat, chill very well, about 3 hours, remove cinnamon stick.

Divide soup between 6 chilled bowls, garnish with additional berries and sorbet. Serve immediately.

Rating = So God Damn Good

Room with a View

Can you imagine my surprise when I pulled back the curtains in my hotel room in Montreal and this stared me in the face, big as life.

I think my exact words were "holy shit". I was especially shocked because upon check-in I was told that they couldn't guarantee that I would have a view from my room.

Wow.

It was really wonderful to see this every morning when I got up, and then again at night after returning from a very very long day.

So, yes, I'm back...and now I have to pack. Shit.

Ugh..I Suck at Posting

One comment asked me to elaborate on why July (and March and October) suck the big one in my industry, this is why. In general I put out about 35 proposals a year for new work. This should break down to about 3 a month, which would be manageable. But. the deadlines don't always fall into that nice 3 a month spread, they usually pile up on given months, for example so far this month I've had 7 requests for proposals for new work - 7, so about two a week, this is on top of preparing for a few interviews that are coming up in the next few weeks. So, that's just the proposal and interview part. Then there is the conferences that I have to travel to and attend. My company is often invited to present at conferences around the county - all these conferences seem to fall in the three months mentioned before, so not only do I have to prepare 7 proposals, and at least 2 interviews, I need to bounce around to these conferences that we are presenting at as well, to see existing and potential clients. It's tiring and a bit nerve racking, but it's also fun, I wouldn't do it if I didn't enjoy it, it's just a lot of work in a very small period of time.

That, compounded by the fact that...thank you sweet Jesus...we are finally moving into our house in two weeks, I am now faced with the fact that I for the second time in 10 weeks need to pack all of my belongings and put them into boxes and move them. AGAIN. I can't wait, I really can't wait, but packing and moving again, ugh.

So, posting...not going to be much of that in the coming weeks. I do apologize, I know you all wait with bated breath for my new posts...NOT. But I will try and post when I can, come August, the posts will be much more frequent and will contain actual recipes. (Damn it where did the summer go?)

Also, one more thing. because CB and I were only going to be in the retirement village for 10 weeks we didn't have cable installed. Thank God for Netflix. Here is just a sample of what we have watched since moving in:
The Ice Harvest
Love in the Time of Cholera
Amazing Grace
Ocean's 13
The Brave One
Cloverfield
American Gangster
Charlie Wilson's War
Juno

Back Soon. Peace!